Welcome to Midgar
by pixie diva
Summary: A chronicle of what happened to Tifa after Zagnan took her to Midgar. How did she get to the slums? How did she meet Barrett? Why did she never return to her hometown? This story is my answer to some of those questions.


"Cloud."

The name, half remembered, was the first thing on Tifa's lips as she struggled to wake up. She curled up in her sparse hospital bed, fists clenched. "Cloud..."

In the middle of the room, a hanging partition rustled and then was shoved aside, revealing a lively girl with brown pigtails and a broken leg: Tifa's roommate.

"Did'ja just say somethin'?" the girl asked, snapping her gum. "Sleepin' since I first got here, but I could have sworn I heard...well?"

As though on cue, Tifa sighed in her sleep again, and her eyes fluttered open.

"Jumpin' chocobos!" the girl breathed. "You're really...I mean you actually woke up...everyone said...." she trailed off, eyes wide, but before Tifa could formulate a response, she opened her mouth wide to scream, "MOM! _MOM! _You gotta get back here!" the girl waited a few moments, and then drew in another breath. "MOM!"

Tifa winced and raised her arms to rub her temples, only to find herself restrained by what looked like an IV drip.

"What the hell?" she murmured, struggling to detach the drip. "Where on earth..."

"MOM! MOM! MOM!"

The girl's shrieks were finally punctuated by the arrival of a middle aged woman who had to have been her mother. She looked equal parts harried and concerned; albeit more harried and less concerned once she could see that her daughter was unharmed. "Well, what is it?"

The girl pointed at Tifa and snapped her gum again. "Roommate's awake."

"I'm...in Midgar?"

It was the first question Tifa had actually managed to ask since she had woken up, although thousands were surging through her mind. She was just too overwhelmed to ask them yet.

The doctor who was examining her with brisk efficiency nodded. "In Sector 7, yes." he clicked off an instrument and glanced at Tifa speculatively. "I must say, I'm rather surprised you finally woke up."

Finally woke up? Tifa creased her brow, trying to remember why she had even come to Midgar. "How long?"

"Two months. You're lucky. The money your friend left wasn't going to pay your hospital bills for much longer."

"My friend?"

"Yes. Mister..." the doctor rifled through the sheaf of papers before him. "Mister Zagnan."

Zagnan. Of course Tifa remembered her old martial arts training master. But why had he taken her to Midgar? Why had he taken her from Nibelheim? Nibelheim...

Memories hit Tifa like one of Zagnan's punches, and she gasped without shame at the realization of where she had been taken. Nibelheim was undoubtedly gone. Her father...her friends...all gone. Questions began to surge again. What was Shinra saying about the decimation of her hometown? What was being done about it? What were they saying about...

"Sephiroth!" Tifa blurted, finishing her thought aloud. "Please, sir, what is happening with Sephiroth? Has he been caught? Has he..." she swallowed hard, "has he attacked any other towns?"

The doctor looked stunned. "Sephiroth? Miss, Sephiroth left Shinra about a month ago. He's taken a leave of absence." astoundingly, he chuckled. "Funny wondering what a war hero would do on vacation though, right? Think he'll hit the Gold Saucer? Beat every arcade game?"

Tifa smiled weakly, but inside her mind was humming, processing information, struggling not to scream. So Shinra had covered up the mess with Sephiroth. She supposed that made the most sense, if he hadn't caused any more trouble. But it still left a bad taste in her mouth. Sephiroth...Shinra...SOLDIER...they all funneled into the destruction of her home, to being forced into an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar hospital that she apparently couldn't even afford and listen to a doctor joke about Sephiroth entering in the chocobo races. She felt like throwing something.

Misreading her expression, the doctor patted Tifa on one shoulder. "Cheer up, miss. You're alive! And in damn fine condition for it, too. I'm sure you'll find a place to stay in no time. Can you call your friend Zagnan?"

Zagnan? When he wasn't in Nibelheim, Tifa hadn't the slightest idea where Zagnan went. She hadn't even known he'd ever even been to Midgar until today. But it was a start. The only one she had.

Zagnan. She would find Zagnan. And then she would find Sephiroth, and beat rush him until he begged and bled and apologized for what he had done to her home.


End file.
